Plasterboard comprises a core of aerated gypsum plaster sandwiched between two sheets of tough paper or card. In the United Kingdom where homes are almost always constructed from brick and mortar, plasterboard is used mainly for lining internal walls or ceilings and for building partition walls. In the United States, plasterboard which is commonly known as wallboard or drywall, is often used to construct entire homes due to outer walls routinely being made from wood.
To cut plasterboard, it is common to use a knife such as a Stanley Knife (Trade Mark) to cut along a pre-marked pencil line. However, such a technique is inefficient due to a two-step cutting process being required. In the first cutting step, the knife scores and cuts through a paper-like layer on a first side of the plasterboard. By applying pressure along the cut line, the plasterboard snaps open. However, it is then necessary to perform a second cutting step to cut through the paper-like layer on the rear side of the plasterboard which remains intact even on snapping the plasterboard open. The second cutting step can prove to be awkward and unnecessarily strenuous as it is usually necessary to try and cut the paper-like layer on the rear side from below the plasterboard. Such a two-step cutting process is also not a clean process and leads to unnecessary dust and debris being created. An unsatisfactory cut may also be obtained as it is difficult to perform the second cutting step exactly in line with the cut formed in the first cutting step. A final trimming step or use of some sandpaper may be required to obtain a straight cut or smooth edge.
Alternative cutting techniques may use a jig-saw, plasterboard saw or utility saw. However, with such techniques it is difficult to cut out sections from within board material such as plasterboard. These techniques which completely cut through the plasterboard also generate significant amounts of dust and debris. Using electrical appliances such as a jig-saw to cut plasterboard also requires there to be an electrical power source present, which is always not the case.
It is also possible to use a cutting tool as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,659,961, which is incorporated herein by reference. However, the cutting tool described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,659,961 suffers from a number of disadvantages. For example, the cutting tool is difficult to control, thereby increasing the difficulty to obtain a clean straight cut. It is also difficult to obtain a shaped cut-out section using the cutting tool in U.S. Pat. No. 5,659,961 due to the lack of control.
It is an object of at least one aspect of the present invention to obviate or mitigate at least one or more of the aforementioned problems.
It is a further object of at least one aspect of the present invention to provide an improved cutting tool for performing cutting operations.